Melbourne Food Diary

The coffee and cafe capital of the world, Melbourne, is a city that
boasts of a charming heritage and history. A food tour of the city has Nausheen
Tareen hooked to this buzzing culinary marvel down under!

Sisto, the owner of iconic Melbourne coffee shop Pellegrini's in CBD

Not many have heard of William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne.
We too had not heard about him till our food tour guide in Melbourne mentioned
the name. The affable lady who was to take us through the city that boasts of
one of the best café and coffee culture in the world and an equally vibrant
food and nightlife scene introduced us to this historical character. As we met
her outside the iconic Flinders Street railway station to explore and soak in
the vibe of the city, ranked recently as one of the most liveable by The
Economist Intelligence Unit, she began our walk by narrating the story of
William Lamb.

As we stood admiring the majestic entrance of Flinders
station that spans almost two blocks from Swanston Street to Queen Street, our
guide explained Viscount Melbourne stood for a title of nobility or Peerage of
Ireland that was bestowed on Lamb family by the monarchy. William Lamb served
as the home secretary and later Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and was a
political mentor of Queen Victoria.

A roughly ten
minutes’ walk from the station to Bourke Street Mall was to be completed in 3
hours as our guide walked us through the culinary history of Melbourne. En
route, we were to sample the best of what Melbourne had to offer.

Iconic Flinders Street Station

Sir Richard Bourke had named the city Melbourne in honour of then prime minister of the Kingdom, William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne.Coffee Mania

Within a few paces we realized clearly the city can’t
have enough of coffee, it just loves to serve and drink the beverage. As we
strolled through Queen Street listening to interesting tales about how the city
has emerged as the coffee capital of the world, we passed a lot of cafes
advertising coffee as their specialty. Doughnut and coffee, in fact, appeared
to be one of the most popular meal on the go. We must have walked barely a
kilometer but had stopped at various places to grab a quick bite of fresh
confectionary and enjoyed sips of various styles of coffee. We then passed by
French, Greek and Italian outlets that either served continental fare or
advertised dessert and coffee combos. Just as we stopped to enjoy the famous
Melbourne coffee with a few cupcakes our guide returned to speaking about the
history of the city and informed that William Lamb went on to become the prime
minister of the UK and served as its PM from 1835 to 1841.

Bustling cafe street in CBD

Global Cuisine

There is a joke that there are no Australians in Australia. It is a
country made of immigrants and as a result has no cuisine of its own. It is a
melting pot of global cultures serving the best of world cuisines. The culinary
scene in Melbourne was given a truly global touch by cafes that served cuisine
from across the world brought in by settlers over the years. Melbourne’s
cuisine draws on Polynesia, Asian and European inspiration and the results are
staggeringly delicious! We hopped from one historical building to another and
stopped for a bite at cheese cellars, Indian, Thai and Chinese outlets. We
enjoyed a shot of espresso with the Italian family that brought Melbourne’s
first espresso machine and dined with the Greek family that still runs the most
popular Greek restaurant of Melbourne. All this while gulping Victorian state
wines and beers!

Cheese store in CBD

Eclectic Culture

We finally reached Bourke Street Mall which is the
retail heart of central business district (CBD). You have to be there to feel
the buzz of this street. Many heritage shopping arcades have been given a
modern makeover in Melbourne. Yet as a part of preserving the heritage, the
city has not tampered with exteriors. This aspect of heritage conservation
should be a lesson for urban authorities across the globe. Interesting bits
were cafes that had sprung in old warehouses or shops. One saw leather, tailor
or watchmaking spaces being converted in cafes that retained their old charm
but served a truly modern meal. It was interesting walking through bylanes of
Melbourne’s CBD, passing by grafitti lined walls, and restaurants and clubs in
makeshift containers or bunkers, going through menus of wine bars, beer joints
and breakfast places. The city’s bustling food scene gets you hooked. It was
the lunch hour when we were strolling around as lanes had ceased to be walkways
and were lined with small stalls on either side and were packed with tables and
chairs full of professionals out to grab their afternoon meals.

Cafe scene in Melbourne CBD is as eclectic as it gets.

Just before were to have our last coffee with the
guide, she explained to us Bourke Street was named after Sir Richard Bourke,
who was governor of New South Wales. And it was Sir Richard Bourke who had
named the city Melbourne in honour of then prime minister of the Kingdom,
William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne. We may have heard about late Mr Lamb for
the first time, but we sure are not going to forget the story or the experience
ever in our lifetime.